Kasaragod (Kerala) [India], February 21 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party leaders came down heavily on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over his remark on triple talaq and said that the CM is indulging in appeasement and wanted to create a narrative which does not exist.
BJP national spokesperson Tom Vadakkan said that it is for the first time a Chief Minister has cold-bloodedly tried to create this element of appeasement.
“I think this is perhaps the first CM who has deliberately and coldbloodedly tried to create this element of appeasement and that’s also to do so he is trying to create a narrative which does not exist,” he said.
Commenting on Kerala CM Vijayan’s statement, BJP national spokesperson Tom Vadakkan said, “The Chief Minister is either trying to pretend that he does not understand what he is speaking because centrally it is clear and normal divorce is a civil procedure. The final verdict is decisively decided on the basis of evidence produced before the court in the cross-examination of the couple and a final decision taken by the judge.”
“A situation where judgment happens but in triple talaq in a minute you can get divorced by saying talaq, talaq and the talaq. The proceeding is over there is no judge there is nobody to support the woman concerned,” he added.
Meanwhile, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accused the Centre of fanning communalism in the state to hide the state’s progress.
Lashing out at the RSS, Sangh Parivar and the BJP-ruled Centre, Vijayan accused them of conspiring to damage the image of Kerala and foment communal divide in the state.
Defending the practice of triple talaq, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan asked why it is considered a criminal offence for Muslims alone when divorce in all other religions is considered a civil case.
“While divorces take place in all religions, it is only the Triple Talaq that was criminalised (through the law). Why is it a criminal offence for Muslims alone? All other divorce cases are seen as a civil matter in court. However, if it’s a case of divorce between a Muslim couple, then that person (husband) can be sent to jail (for pronouncing Triple Talaq to his spouse),” the Kerala CM said.
Meanwhile, BJP leader KJ Alphons slammed the CM saying that the Communists have already destroyed the state and there no development takes place in Kerala.
“I don’t think there is anything to be damaged in Kerala as the state’s image has been very badly damaged by the Communists as no development has taken place in Kerala. It is the biggest recruit for ISIS much more than Kashmir. So there is nothing to be destroyed the Communists have destroyed it so badly that people event don’t debate or talk about it anymore,” said KJ Alphons.
Referring to triple talaq he accused CM Pinrayi Vijayan of being completely ignorant and being involved in the appeasement of the vote bank.
“Either he is completely ignorant on triple talaq or he just gets into an appeasement vote bank. Quran Chapter 4 also lists down how divorce can happen, no where in Quran it mentions instant triple talaq so is Kerala CM trying to reinvent the Quran?” he said.
Earlier in the day, CM Pinarayi Vijayan questioned if a country could have separate punitive standards in matters of matrimonial divorce.
“People from different religious backgrounds have come here for the conference. Can we use a different mode of punishment for each person? For a person following a certain religion, there’s one law and for another, there is another law. Can we say that we got our citizenship because we were born to a particular religion?” Vijayan asked.
Further, in a scathing attack on the Jamaat-e-Islami for allegedly being part of a recent meeting of the RSS, Vijayan said the Jamaat’s position on issues concerning minorities does not reflect the stand of other Muslim groups.
“For whom did Jamaat e Islami hold talks with the RSS? It could not have been for the minority community as the majority in our country is of a secular bent of mind and can see the communal agenda of the RSS. The stand taken by the Jamaat e Islami is not the position of other Muslim groups,” he said.
The CM further alleged that a section of the Congress has a soft stand on the RSS while a section of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) took the lead in brokering an alliance with the Welfare Party. (ANI)
This report is auto-generated from ANI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.